BMW is preparing to present an electric version of its 3 Series, as it did for the X3 SUV. It was without counting the leak of photos and information by China.
As is often the case with new products intended initially for the Chinese market, the new BMW i3 is already appearing on the web before its official presentation. It was the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Technological Information which released some pictures and information ahead of time.
Quite surprisingly, BMW seems to take the name i3, used since 2013 on the brand’s electric city car. But here, it is the electric version of the 3 Series sedan that this name designates. There should therefore be a reorganization of the range, which could lead to the disappearance of the i3 as we know it today.
A 3 Series transformed into electric
The new 100% electric sedan i3 takes up the recipe of the iX3, with a thermal BMW base, here the 3 Series. Chinese version requires, it is the extended wheelbase variant which is used here. We notice that the headlights are slightly different at the front, which could herald the restyling of the 3 Series thermal. In the operation, the optics indeed lose the small notch on the lower part. Like the iX3, the i3 sedan has specific blue elements (outline of the full grille and of the rear diffuser revised) to remind you that it belongs to the universe of the brand’s electrics.
The Chinese ministry’s website claims that the model has a single electric motor placed at the rear, developing 340 hp. This is the same power as the i4 electric sedan, in its eDrive40 rear-wheel drive version. The i3 could nevertheless leave the exclusivity of the “big” engine to its big sister. and take over the block of the iX3, developing 286 hp and 400 Nm of torque. We will therefore have to wait for confirmation from BMW, which should soon present its new model.
Photos: Chinese Ministry of Industry and Technological Information
Read also on Auto-Moto:
BMW iX3 test: green propeller
BMW i4 2021: first video contact
BMW 3 Series (G20): which version to choose?
BMW is preparing to present an electric version of its 3 Series, as it did for the X3 SUV. It was without counting the leak of photos and information by China.
As is often the case with new products intended initially for the Chinese market, the new BMW i3 is already appearing on the web before its official presentation. It was the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Technological Information which released some pictures and information ahead of time.
Quite surprisingly, BMW seems to take the name i3, used since 2013 on the brand’s electric city car. But here, it is the electric version of the 3 Series sedan that this name designates. There should therefore be a reorganization of the range, which could lead to the disappearance of the i3 as we know it today.
A 3 Series transformed into electric
The new 100% electric sedan i3 takes up the recipe of the iX3, with a thermal BMW base, here the 3 Series. Chinese version requires, it is the extended wheelbase variant which is used here. We notice that the headlights are slightly different at the front, which could herald the restyling of the 3 Series thermal. In the operation, the optics indeed lose the small notch on the lower part. Like the iX3, the i3 sedan has specific blue elements (outline of the full grille and of the rear diffuser revised) to remind you that it belongs to the universe of the brand’s electrics.
The Chinese ministry’s website claims that the model has a single electric motor placed at the rear, developing 340 hp. This is the same power as the i4 electric sedan, in its eDrive40 rear-wheel drive version. The i3 could nevertheless leave the exclusivity of the “big” engine to its big sister. and take over the block of the iX3, developing 286 hp and 400 Nm of torque. We will therefore have to wait for confirmation from BMW, which should soon present its new model.
Photos: Chinese Ministry of Industry and Technological Information
Read also on Auto-Moto:
BMW iX3 test: green propeller
BMW i4 2021: first video contact
BMW 3 Series (G20): which version to choose?
